With the year approaching its end, it is time once again to post some of my favourite photos from the last 12 months.
2022 hasn’t been the easiest of years it has to be said. Some days are better than others, but life simply isn’t the same since my wife Akiko died last summer. These things take time of course. Maybe even a lifetime. But I miss her enormously each and every day. Even the good things that happen are tinged with sadness, as I’m not able to share them with her, or enjoy the moment together.
And good things have happened. With Japan finally relaxing its strict pandemic regulations, I was able to head back to Britain for the first time in three years. A much needed and way overdue chance to see family and old friends. Those same easing of border controls have also allowed me to start doing my Tokyo photowalk tours again, and much to my surprise, I hit the ground running — or perhaps I should say walking — the moment visitors were allowed in again. Something I hope will continue as we head into the new year.
The other real positive has been Tokyo Conversations, the book I made, crowdfunded and just released with my good friend Giovanni. At times it seemed hard to believe we could actually make a book. Even when it was finished, I had real doubts about us getting the necessary funding. But it all worked out way better than I could have ever imagined, and now, a good while after we started the process of sending each other photos, the book is a real thing. Something that still feels unreal at times. We actually have a photobook. Not just something on a screen like we are so used to, but an actual book. There’s more info about the whole process here, and if you fancy buying a copy, it’s available for pre-order in the shop on my portfolio site.
So all in all a very mixed year to say the least. Akiko would have been over the moon to see the book come to life. I dearly wish she could have seen it. But I’ve had the honour of dedicating it to her, and without her encouragement over the years, not to mention her critical eye, there’s no way I’d have been confident enough to put out a book. So she was and is a key component of it. Something that makes me happy and also terribly sad.
Finally, photography itself has meant an enormous amount to me over the years, a fact I’ve mentioned before in these roundups, but in the last 12-18 months or so it has meant even more. Without the distraction it provides, the need to be out in the world, and the necessary dedication, it’s hard sometimes to imagine how I’d have got through everything that has happened. And as for the year’s actual photos, which this post is supposed to be about, I’ve gone down the usual path of choosing shots that mean something to me, either in regards the results, or the experience surrounding them. I’ve moved more towards sets of images in the last few years, meaning quite a lot are part of a longer series, so I’ve linked the original posts beneath each photo or photos. So at long last then, here are the results from 2022. Just photographs at the end of the day, but the process of getting them felt almost essential.
Images that wrap-up Tokyo Times for the year, but the usual Tuesday and Friday posts will start up again on January 6th. So until then, enjoy the break, and be sure to make the most of the moments you have with your loved ones.
A terrifically old school little Tokyo bar
An overgrown and crumbling old Tokyo hotel
Broken and abandoned Japanese vending machines
An old Tokyo home like no other
A Tokyo cherry blossom journey
Tokyo summer and spring urban pinks
The stark transition from old Tokyo home to just an old Tokyo house
An abandoned, almost Bond villain-like billionaire’s mansion
An old school Tokyo barber shop and its elderly owner
An incredible looking old Tokyo building that sadly no longer exists
The colours, decay and increasing emptiness of Japan’s countryside
An old school Tokyo record shop
Sights and sounds from a truly lovely little yakitori restaurant
A small homage to Japan’s humble and green public telephones
The misty mountains and abandoned homes of Tokyo’s far west
Beautifully bleak scenes of a Japanese village in a snow storm
Denise says
Such beautiful words and pictures. Thank you for always sharing despite what you are going through. Stay strong Lee and I wish you all the strength in the world.
Lee says
Thank you very much, and you are welcome. Taking and then sharing photos has been a huge help.
That’s really kind of you. I shall do my best. Words like yours definitely help.
Günter says
There are so many fantastic photos. I have enjoyed them all. I hope the new year is kind to you. Take care of yourself.
Lee says
Thanks a lot. Very pleased with many of these, so that’s good to hear. And thanks ever so much for the kind words. They are very much appreciated.
Ken C says
Thanks for another year of wonderful photos that continue to feed my Japanese addiction! I will be there for a business trip in March and will visit Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Takaoka and this time I even get a day in Sapporo which will be a first. Chance to catch up with a couple of Japanese friends that I haven’t seen since before Covid. I am glad that you are managing to keep going alone. I know it’s a cliché but my experience is that it doesn’t go away but gets better with time. Best wishes and looking forward to 2023 (and my copy of your book).
Lee says
Thanks ever so much, Ken. Not long at all til you visit for real then. That’s a nice and varied trip too.
To hear that, knowing that you’ve been through the same thing, is very encouraging. Thank you.
Cheers again for backing us. We are really happy how it’s come out, so all being well you’ll like it just as much.
Linda says
So happy to see the barber again. Fingers crossed the verdant hotel hangs on till I can come back to Tokyo and see it. Thank you so much for what you do, it really brings me joy, as well as other interestingly mixed emotions.
Richard says
Thank you from me, too, for all of your engaging photos this year. It was fun to remember some of the ones you posted earlier in the year. I always look forward to seeing what you are going to share very few days.
Many years ago my wife went through her own struggles with cancer. I recall every well how much my work helped me to sustain some perspective and thus keep some semblance of emotional well-being. Obviously, your work doesn’t eliminate the pain of Akiko’s passing. But it helps. Embrace it. And keep sharing it with us, please.
Lee says
@Linda I’m sure the hotel will still be there. It might be crumbling, but it’s been like that for years. And you are very welcome. Really good to hear my photos can elicit a range of emotions.
@Richard Very sorry to hear your wife had to deal with cancer, but glad to hear she got through it. Yes, it definitely helps. Often a lot. And no worries about that. I will continue to share what I take.
Kouichi says
Absolutely epic green jungle – still trying to get to that one myself! Great stuff. Going on my longest stretch in this city and as much as there have been ups and downs, sometimes I step back and realize that it is truly a unique place and wonderful for so many different reasons – both the oft-cited ones and the more intriguing which you often capture so well. Absolutely worth living in. Wishing all the best holiday cheer!
Lee says
Thank you. All the best best to you too.
Yeah, I completely agree. It’s far from perfect, but the good definitely outweighs the bad. And photography-wise it really is tough to beat. Talking of which, you will enjoy seeing the overgrown hotel. Well worth a visit.
Sean says
What an awesome set of photographs. So many incredible shots. Me and I’m sure many many many others get so much out of your work. That makes me even happier to know sharing your work helps you. Stay strong and I sincerely hope the new year is a positive one for you personally and professionally.
Lee says
Thank you very much. That’s really good to hear. I’ve always shot what interests me, so to hear it isn’t just me that likes the resultant photos is always encouraging.
Cheers. And you too. All the very best for 2023.
scruffy says
So nice. A quiet walk home in snow country is my fave of the bunch. Just so perfect.
Best wishes for a healthy and happy 2023 to you, Lee, and everyone else, too.
Lee says
Cheers. Do like how that one came out. A nice memento from a fun trip too.
Thank you. Likewise. I hope 2023 is a good one for you.
Gijs says
Hi Lee,
Thank you so much for all your beautifull and funny pictures. It has been a rough year for you but you still managed to inspire people and put smiles on their faces and that is amazing.
As Japan is now open I will hopefully send some clients for your photo tours again!
Take care,
Gijs
Lee says
Hi Gijs
Thanks ever so much, and you are very welcome. The whole photographic process has been a huge help, so it’s even better that other people get something out of the results too.
And thanks again for helping with bookings. Really appreciated. Not sure how long it’ll be til visitor numbers are back to what they were, but it has definitely been a promising re-start.
Damien Sams says
Hi Lee.
So glad I stumbled upon your wonderful photography and narratives via the dreaded IG, and from there, your blog. These year in review shots are amazing. So much history, life fully lived, nature reclaiming the built environment, melancholy, joy and remembrance of things past evident in your photo essays. I noticed one of the LPs for sale outside the record shop is a Paul Mauriat album. My mother-in-law adored him and went to his farewell concert in Osaka.
Thanks for sharing here and if I get the chance one day during a trip to Japan I hope to join one of your photo walks. Wishing you a productive 2023.
Regards, Damien.
Lee says
Hi Damien
Thanks ever so much. Really kind of you, and glad to hear you’ve made it over here. More and much bigger photos. The latter in particular I always feel is a huge loss on IG. That’s a nice coincidence with the Paul Mauriat album. A lovely little detail.
Cheers. It’d be good to take you round, and you too, I hope 2023 is a good one for you.
cdilla says
So many marvelous photographs. You have book-ended the collection with two of my favourites, and I really like the moody forest ravine bridge shot that captured the elusive Japanese bigfoot.
Lee says
Thanks a lot. Those two were standouts for me as well, both the results and the memories connected with them.
That forest shot came out way better than I expected. Out of my comfort zone in every sense taking that one.